Tennis racket



June ll, 1935. H, JOHNSTON 2,004,609

TENNIS RAGKET med Maron 21, 1952 2 vSmets-sheet 1 ,56 a? 1 L I 'IQ' I',l l I 57 I4 "35 =l 7 42? ,5e

Harry Jhms ton.

. A `CRNEYS June/11, 1935. H. JOHNSTON TENNIS RAcKET Filed March 21,1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR JLZTTORNEYS Patented June 11, 1935 UNETEDSTATES "oiFFicE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to sporting equipment and has particular relationto rackets or bats especially applicable for playing tennis, squash, orother games where strung instruments or rackets are employed.

An object of the invention is to construct a rugged but simpliiiedracket for the above or removable previously strung insert or inner headframe, the use of which eliminates the necessity of waiting for a racketto be restrung, a common practice with the present type of racket, bymaking available to the user a convenient source of supply through whichsuch pre-strung inserts of desired tautness or quality of Stringing maybe immediately procured and substituted for the damaged one, which maythen be discarded if desired. 'Ihis feature is of material benefit tothe user as it permits the immediate resumption of play.

Another object of the invention is to provide a removable previouslystrung insert for a racket which can be removed and left at are-stringing establishment without leaving the entire racket and inplace of which another strung insert may be employed while the rstinsert is being reconditioned.

Another object of the invention is to provide a racket having a smoothand rugged frame which is not weakened by having a series of holes projecting therethrough, through which rackets ordi-Y narily are strung withthe Stringing emerging and lying exposed on the periphery making themvulnerable to damage or severance when coming in violent contact withcourt projections, and in which a strung insert is employed in suchmanner that the loops and knots around the periphery of the insert areentirely shielded from the destructive effect of the violent use towhich a racket is subjected. f

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel method of securingracket inserts in frames in such manner that an insert will be tightlyheld in position as though the two were integral.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel means of securingtogether the parts of a racket frame by the employment therein'of fibersleeves glued ,in position between the parts of the frame within drilledopenings extending therethrough, thus eliminating the necessity forscrews which frequently cut or split the material of the frame duringthe process of `manufacture and subsequently in the hands of the user,until it is so weakened as eventually to be rendered unsuitable for use.

Another object of the invention is to construct a removable' insert forrackets which requires less material for Stringing than has beenrequired fory other rackets heretofore employed and which'can bereturned to the manufacturer thereof for re- Stringing Without thenecessity for mailing or otherwise transporting the entire racket.

Another object of the invention is to provide an adjustable balancingelement for rackets which can be moved longitudinally of a racket handleuntil the feel of the racket is-satisfactory to the user. By providingbalancing elements of varying Weights and lengths the now presenttedious and costly manufacturing process necessary in achieving theextreme accuracy of weight and perfection of balance is materiallyreduced or` en-V tirely eliminated.

Another object of the invention is to improve the covering of rackethandles by providing therefor a iiexible leather or other suitablecasing, the edges of which will not be lapped upon the surface of thehandle as is now customary in racket construction, but will be turnedinwardly with respect to the handle and clamped in position by thelatter in such manner that the cover will provide a perfectly smoothgripping surface and will not be easily displaced from the handle of theracket during employment. l A

The invention comprises generally a bent frame the opposite ends ofwhich are secured together within a sectional handle in which isadjustably secured a movable racket balancing member which can beadjusted from one end to the other of the handle until the racket issatisfactorily balanced. The inside of the head framd is tapered fromone edge thereof to the other to receive a, correspondingly taperedpre-strung insert which is fastened in the frame b-y screws, after theinsert is pressed into such position as to be tightly secured within thetapered interior surface of the frame. The ends of the frame and otherparts thereof are secured rigidly together by fiber sleeves projectingthrough aligned openings in the various parts thereof and secured inposition by -glue or other suitable adhesive material. The racket handleconsists of a pairof sections, each covered by a strip of leather the'edges of which are turned inwardly and tightly securedV together whenthe handle *sectionsl are secured in position upon the end of the frame.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a racket embracing the principles of thisinvention and with all of the parts thereof assembled and ready for use;

Fig. 2 is aside elevational or edge View of the assembled racketillustrated by Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a View similar to that illustrated by Fig. 2 except that apre-strung insert embraced in the racket is illustrated in a positionjust after having been removed from the racket frame;

Fig. 4 is an end view of the racket as it might appear looking from theleft hand side of Figs. 1, 2 and 3;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional View of the racket frame as it might appearsubstantially on line 5-5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view through the racket handle as itmight appear in the plane of line 6-5 in Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional View of the Vracket handle takensubstantially on line 1 1 of Fig. 6; Fig. 8 is anenlarged plan View ofthe insert employed in the racket illustrated by Figs. 1, 2 and 3;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary, perspective view of the racket'insertillustrated by Fig. 8 and illustrating the method in which the insert isstrung and a part of the structure employed for securing the Fig. 10 isa cross-sectional view of the racket taken substantially on line Ill-I8of Fig. 1;

Fig. 11 -is another cross-sectional view of the racket, also taken onFig. 1, but on line II-II thereof; 1

Fig. 12 is a View of a key or small screw driver which may be `employedin removing the racket insert.

Referring particularly to the drawings: Va racket I6, embracing theinvention, comprises essentially a frame I1, `a racket handle I8, and aremovable pre-strung insert I9. 1

The frame may be constructed of any suitable material, although,in theembodiment of the invention illustrated it comprises an elongated bar orstrip of wood tapered somewhat at the sides to reduce the thickness andweight of the outer end of the racket and rounded off in such taperedregions as is indicated at 2| to provide a smooth, arcuate exteriorsurface around approximately the outer half of the part of the frame inwhich the insert I9 is secured. The ends o-fthe bar constituting theframe are bent'together in a region between the insert andthe handle anda triangular block 22 is there employed to ll the space between theinner edges of the bar and the racket insert. The ends of the bar andthe triangular block all are secured rigidly together, as isindicatedparticularly by Fig. 5,V by ber or other suitable sleeves 23 which areglued within aligned openings extending transversely across theaforesaid frame parts. Glued,or otherwise secured to the sides of theframe I1, around the inner edges of the insert securing part of theframe, are a pair of arcuate reinforcingstrips 24 and 26, the ends ofwhich terminate at and merge into the curved exterior surface of theframe.

The two ends of the barforming the frame I1 extend interiorly of thehandle I8, from one end thereof to the other, and are there secured bygluing the adjacent surfaces thereof and by gluing the exterior surfacesthereof to the interior surfaces of the handle I8.

,c Within the handle I8 V the frame is provided insert in position; K

with a longitudinally disposed notch or recess 21, formed midway betweenthe opposite edge surfaces thereof, and within which project tongues 28and 29 extending inwardly from the interior surface of the handle I3.Each of the tongues 28 and 29 is formed on different sections 3| and 32respectively of the handle I8 and the edges of the sections approach oneanother approximately midway between the sides of the frame bar endsprojecting therein. v -g Disposed within the recess v21, and secured inthreads formed on the adjacent interior surfaces of the frame ends andthe tongues 28 and 29 during the insertion thereof, is an externallythreaded weight 33 which is considerably shorter than the length of therecess and hence can be moved from one end of the recess to the other tobalance the racket. a diametrically disposed slot 34 in which a screwdriver or other suitable tool can be inserted for turning the weightkand thus changing its position.

The end of the handle is closed by a fibrous or other suitable plate 36,through the center of which an opening large enough to admit theinsertion of a standard screwdriver without the necessity for removingthe plate, thus giving ready access to the adjustable balancing weight,is provided. This plate is removably secured to the handle by screws 31.

Adjacent the end of the handle but around the exterior surface thereof,is disposed a leather or other suitable ring 38 which is employedprincipally to buildup the end of the handle to render it more easilyand securely held. Secured around `the exterior surface of the handleI8, by any suitable adhesive material, is a leather or other suitablecover 39 which consists of a pair of sections 4I and 42, the edges ofwhich are turned inwardly around the adjacent edges of the handlesections 3i and 32 and are there securely clamped in position when thehandle is assembled.

The insert opening formed in the outer end of the frame I1 istaperedslightly from one side thereof tothe other, as is indicated at43, and the insert I9 is correspondingly tapered in such manner that thetwo will nt as near perfectly as possible when the racket is assembled.

The insert I9 consists of an arcuate rim 44, formed of any suitablelight metal or moulded material, the outwardly curved edges of whichseat against the interiorcsurface of the insert opening in the frame I1.By reason of the inherent rigidity of the frame. due to its arcuatecrosssectional configuration and the materials employed in itsconstruction, a racket press ordinarily is not required. Midway betweenthe edges of the rim, are formed a plurality of spaced lugs 46 have ingthreaded openings therein for receiving screws 41, projecting throughopenings formed in the frame I1. In these openings in the frame andunderneath the heads of the screws 41, are glued or otherwise secured,short fiber sleeves 49 which are compressed against the lugs 46 to takethe load caused by tightening the screws 41, thus decreasing thepossibility of splitting the frame I1.

When the rim 44 is removed from the frame I1 the insert is strung bythreading catgut or other suitable strings 5I across* the rim andbetweenopenings 52 spaced thereabout, from one end thereof to another and thenweaving, between such cross strings, longitudinal strings 53 extendingbetween the sides `of the racket frame. In order to make the` curve ofthe loops more gradual and to elevate the strings from direct One end ofthis weight is provided with Contact with the rims of stringing holes,and to give greater resiliency to the insert the loops are underlaid,within the groove, by a string, reed or projection such as is indicatedat 55.

In order properly to center the insert within the frame I1, the rim 44is provided with an outwardly projecting centering lug 56 which isadapted to extend into a slot formed in the block 22 approximately inthe center of the racket frame. A key such as that indicated at inFigure 12 is employed for removing or tightening any of the severalscrews embraced in the racket structure. In assembling the inserts I9within the frame il, the lug 56 is disposed in the aforesaid notch andon the side of the frame from which the rim can be inserted into thetapering opening in the frame, and the insert is then pressed inwardlywith respect to the frame until the two are tightly held together withthe opposite edges of the rim midway between the opposite edges of theframe. In this position the screws 4T are inserted within the sleeves 49and are tightened uniformly against the rim lugs 46.

When the racket requires re-stringing, or when a differently strunginsert is desired for play upon a particular occasion, the screws 41 areremoved and the insert displaced by pressing on the edges thereof insuch manner as to slide the insert gradually, and equally at all points,from within the insert opening. If the removed insert is to bere-strung, another can be inserted in the racket to permit thecontinuous use thereof while such restringing operation is beingperformed.

Should the racket be improperly balanced for any player desiring toemploy it, a standard screwdriver may be inserted through the opening inend plate 36 and the adjusting weight 33 moved up or down the handleuntil the desired balance is attained.

The exterior surface of the handle and other parts of the racket areentirely free from outwardly projecting seams or other protuberances andthat the strings are so protected by the racket frame as not to bedisplaced or injured when the racket is struck edgewise against anyobject which might cut the strings, were the latter exposed.

While the structure, as herein disclosed, constitutes a preferred formand application of the invention, it is to be understood that otherstructures differing widely from that herein disclosed are within thescope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:-

1. A racket comprising a frame having a pair of parallel bar ends withan elongated recess formed therebetween, a pair of handle sectionssecured upon said frame and having a pair of tongues projecting intosaid recess for securing said bar ends in properly spaced relation, andan adjustable weight mounted in said recess between said tongues and theadjacent surfaces of said bar ends.

2. A racket comprising a main frame having transversely tapered innerwalls, a secondary rigid and self-sustained string carrying frame havingits outer peripheral dimension transversely tapered and adapted to makea wedged frictional engagement with the-inner peripheral walls of saidmain frame.

3. In a racket of the class described, the combination of a main framehaving apertures for securing means extending therethrough, a stringcarrying frame of concave cross section adapted to fit within and engagethe inner periphery of said main frame with the edges of said concavecross section, and having bosses adapted to receive securing means,projecting outwardly from said concavity and adapted to bear against theinner periphery of said main frame and register with the securing meansapertures in said main frame.

4. In a racket of the class described, the combination of a main frame,a string carrying frame adapted to be retained within said main frame,V

HARRY JOHNSTON.

